Thank you! I must say, you and your little girl are quite the pair. It must be difficult to keep up with her, all the growing little ones do with their wardrobes.

Hello Isabel,

I thank you for your friendship here and hope you and your loved ones are doing well.  It seems like yesterday that I inquired about BSFP with you and I now have only 3 months to go, Lord willing.  It has been a blessing in my life, though the more I learn the more I realize I have to learn.

Blessings and Peace,

Jan Lyn

Isabel!   How are you this morning?  I understand Colorado has been getting quite a bit of the fluffy white stuff.   Here in KY, we're having an incredibly mild winter thus far, which is a huge relief from the last two.  However, we know we are far from "out of the woods" with Old Man Winter.  February can be brutal in these parts, but we're enjoying this while it lasts.   I got out and walked 2 miles yesterday.  

I just read an article this morning that upset me from an ethical standpoint.  The US Navy is planning to use DOLPHINS to find mines if Iran decides to block the Straits of Hormuz.  It's bad enough that we seem to "need" to kill others of our own species, but to drag in involuntary members of God's creation is just plain wrong.  I find it ironic that dolphins are known for their sophisticated diplomacy with one another.  Why aren't we learning about their diplomacy instead of USING them. 

Of course the reasoning is that we have got to get that oil through.  <sigh>   When are we going to get past this whole fossil fuel thing that is endangering our gift of creation?   Living in KY, coal, strip mining and mountain top removal are such huge issues, as well as the results of burning coal for electricity. 

The amazing thing is that we HAVE the technologies as well as the geniuses to be using alternatives to fossil fuels AND to apply robotics to find underwater mines if such should be necessary.  If robotics can be used for cardiac and neurosurgery, then surely they can be used to find mines.  And wind and solar power are here for us, just waiting to be used!  

I do get frustrated with humankind's resorting to violence and abuse of our planet.   Thanks for listening to me blow off a bit of steam on those 2 issues.  We just CAN'T really be considering war with Iran, but . . .   <sigh>   

peace & blessings,

        bets

Hello Isabel!

Isabel,

Thank thee so much for your welcome and sharing thy photos. Thee has given much to those of us who are seeking a deeper relationship with our Lord with thine website. It is a wonderful resource for all  who are journeying, Quaker or other denominations with leanings or is it "leadings" toward Friends Plainess & Simplicity.

Sr. Clare (Pamela)

Isabel,

My apologies, I only now noticed the "friend request" from you.  If you still want to discuss Christian Friends in liberal meetings I will be happy to have that conversation.

David

Dear Isabel,

There is no question about how we experience our own lives. Following/witnessing is indeed hard/challenging work. Exhausting and exhilirating, demanding, joyful. It requires the greatest of patience, discipline, and willingness to dwell in that Light every moment, with ear cocked to the slightest whisper from the Divine. This is our very real world, and in our world thee and I experience the reality of God, however imperfectly. But in the World, we are very strange and viewed as idealists, we who believe that people can listen to God for instruction instead of being merely base creatures. And to those who hear us but don't really listen, we are raving pollyannas.

In other words, idealism is in the eye of the beholder. I'd rather be an idealist than a realist, if being a realist is accepting the world strictly as it is. When I am reminded of Reality, that's when I become grumpy, stingy and annoyed--not what God has asked of me, certainly!

Isabel, I would take great pleasure in learning from thee and all the other Friends here. I've only recently become better acquainted with ideas of God within other strands of our Society, and this past summer and fall I had a wonderful email conversation with a conservative Friend on a more Christian version of Quakerism than the one I am familiar with. The email conversation ended sadly, with much misunderstanding, and I feel I have much to learn about talking with all kinds of Friends. I am earnest in my wish, looking to embrace my Conservative cousins as brothers and sisters in God.

Thine in the Light, Paula

Dear Isabel,

In re: thy note under Christian Outreach to Quaker seekers. There has been a similar recognition of wounded seekers bristling at "God talk" in the thread about "Why talking about God is rude." Perhaps thee would like to read that discussion too.

In a way, wouldn't thee say that our message of Love and our Christian ideals are idealistic and "Pollyannish" in this world? :)

I know of no way to resolve the problem of Friends bristling at each other. As thee says, we are talking about ideals but are merely human. All I can do is live in that Light and be as open-hearted as God calls me to be. If thee knows how we can bridge the gap between the ideal and reality, beyond following God, please share thy wisdom.

Thine faithfully in the Light, Paula

Good morning, Isabel,

I am pleased to hear from thee! Thy blog has been of great help, as has thy participation in discussions here on QuakerQuaker.

Blessings, Paula